Texas Renaissance Festival

Halloween weekend, we visited the Texas Renaissance Festival (Ren Fest for short). I got free tickets from work, so we figured it was worth going! I've always been intrigued by Renaissance festivals. Not that I ever wanted to go and dress up or anything, but they are interesting! This one is very big!! There was lots to see. They have shows (singers, dancers, comedians, etc.) and lots of food and games. Oh, and they have artisans you can go watch - you can see glass blowers, paper makers, blacksmiths, etc. The place it was held basically looks like a huge Old Timey village.

And the people watching. Oh, my. There were lots of interesting people there. This was really the best part for us.

Anyway, we had a fun time with our friends Kirby and Christine and we look forward to going back next year!

Wanna get married at Ren Fest? No problem - here's your chapel.

Us in the German section (it was laid out by country-each area had somewhat country-specific food)

The pickle cart. Yeah, I don't get it either. They were yelling and running.

Us with a suit of armor outside one of the restaurants

Belly dancing

We advised them to enter the costume contest. They did not. We know because we were there. Highlight of the costume contest - the group dressed up as the Space Balls crew. It was awesome! I wish I had a pic to share.

Llama!

Kirby at the archery booth

Showing Christine the ropes.

You can pretty much tell where her arrow is headed from this pic.. haha.

Kirby let me try too!

Scary fox person

Birds of Prey show

Elephant rides!

Jousting

Me with Lan before one of the shows

My favorite show - FIRE WHIP. This guy was really funny.

That's right. Zelda Ocarinas for sale. There was a guy right beside this display playing one. Buy one and you get the music from the game. Haha. My brothers, dad & I all played Zelda Ocarina of Time on N64, so this was a blast from the past!

After this post, I'm caught up activity-wise. I still have lots of recipes to share, though! And Christmas pics! YAY!

Love from Houston,

L & J

A Night Downtown

Our real anniversary was back in July, but since it was our first anniversary, and we think that's pretty important, we wanted to take a small trip to celebrate. Nothing huge, just a fun night downtown. Since our anniversary fell around the time we were buying the house, we decided it would be better to wait to take our special trip - so we took it in October!

Lan, being the awesome husband he is, planned a visit to the King Tut exhibit at the Museum of Fine Art during our trip. He was less than interested in the exhibit, but I was really excited about it. I have a weird interest in Egyptology, and some of the items in the exhibit had never been to the US before!!! I was bummed when I found out that the actual King Tut and his iconic burial mask would not be part of the exhibit. They are too "old" and "fragile" to travel or something. LAME. But the exhibit was still awesome, by my standards. Lan even enjoyed himself a little.

We stayed at Hotel ZaZa. It's in the boutique hotels of the world top ten list, and in the top 20 hotels in Houston (out of 425 on Trip Advisor). It was very trendy and chic. It was a really fun place to stay. It was one of those places with a stacked mini-bar but the cheapest candy bar available was, like, $5 or something ridiculous. We were very careful not to eat those! Hotel ZaZa is right next door to the museum, so they had a special partnership with them - get VIP tickets to the exhibit and a special deal on a room through the King Tut Package. So we did that. Lan got a great deal on a suite, which was awesome. You could rent movies through the hotel's movie service through the TV, which was cool, but really pricey. They even had movies that weren't out on video yet! I thought that was neat, but those movies cost what you would pay for two movie tickets to see them in theaters.

For dinner that night, we ate at a Brazilian Steakhouse we had a Living Social coupon for. Lan had been to a Brazilian Steakhouse before and LOVED it. It's a very manly place. You pay an all-you-can-eat price and get an unlimited selection of meats. They have hot sides and a yummy salad bar, and your waitstaff comes around with different meat selections for you to try - lamb (actually, this was my favorite), bacon wrapped filet, various types of steak, sausage, chicken, etc. They also served fried bananas and grilled pineapple - YUM. It was very good. We always said we didn't think it was worth the money for me to go (and pay full price... all I can eat is not all that much), and we were right. Lan said he didn't think I would like it any more than other fancy restaurant, and he was right. I enjoyed it, but for the money, I'd rather go to the Melting Pot or a nice steakhouse.

Pictures of the Hotel Lobby:

They had these posters up all over the hotel - notice the quote at the top from Steve Martin's SNL King Tut song, haha.

(I was sharing this with my coworkers, and they had never heard of this skit before, so in case you're in the same boat, you can watch it here)

Pictures from our suite:

Mirrored dining room table and chandelier - fancy!

LOVED that mirror (ya'll know how I feel about mirrors in decorative frames...)

Living Room area (with Lan lounging in the background)

That doorway leads to the bathroom and bedroom

I just thought this was a cool piece of furniture...

The bathroom

TV in the bedroom

King-sized bed. What a treat!

Me with the statue of Anubis outside of the museum.

All in all, it was an awesome weekend! We had so much fun :)

I have a lot of blog catching up to do!!! I have lots of recipes and pictures I want to share, so expect lots of updates soon.

Lots of love from Houston,

L and J

Sweet Treats - Chocolate Chip Cookies

This recipe is the New York Time's favorite Chocolate Chip Cookie recipe (or that's what the pin said anyway). I found it through Pinterest/Tender Crumb. Seriously. How can you resist a recipe like this??

Well, let me tell you. The ingredients are a little daunting because it calls for two types of flour - bread and pastry. Bread flour was easy enough to find, but I couldn't find pastry flour! Through some internet research, I found an acceptable substitute - 3 parts cake flour to 1 part all purpose flour. The poster from Tender Crumb encouraged not to do this, so if you can find pasty flour, go for it! But I think it's kind of a specialty item.

Also, Tender Crumb encourages you to buy the chocolate bars (not like Hershey's - the ones from the baking aisle) and chop your own chocolate. I know that would have been better, but they were really expensive, so I went for the chocolate chips (bittersweet, always, not milk).

These were SO GOOD. I made a batch and then refrigerated the leftover dough and we ate off it for several days. Lan told me I'm not allowed to go back to my old chocolate chip cookie, so it must be good, right?

My Picture

Picture from Tender Crumb

I felt the need to include this one because it looks way yummier than mine! (See how they used the chopped chocolate instead of chips? Yum!)

Jacques Torres' Secret Chocolate Chip Cookie Recipe
Makes twenty-six 5-inch cookies or 8 1/2 dozen 1 1/4-inch cookies (that's a lot, so I reduced the recipe by half, I think)

Ingredients
1 pound unsalted butter
1 3/4 cups granulated sugar
2 1/4 cups packed light-brown sugar
4 large eggs
3 cups plus 2 tablespoons pastry flour (3 parts cake flour to 1 part all purpose flour)
3 cups bread flour
1 tablespoon salt
2 teaspoons baking powder
2 teaspoons baking soda
1 tablespoon pure vanilla extract
2 pounds bittersweet chocolate, coarsely chopped (I used chips)

Directions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line baking sheets with parchment paper or nonstick baking mats; set aside.
- In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream together butter and sugars.
- Add eggs, one at a time, mixing well after each addition.
- Reduce speed to low and add both flours, baking powder, baking soda, vanilla, and chocolate; mix until well combined.
- Using a 4-ounce scoop for larger cookies or a 1-ounce scoop for smaller cookies, scoop cookie dough onto prepared baking sheets, about 2 inches apart.
- Bake until lightly browned, but still soft, about 20 minutes for larger cookies and about 15 minutes for smaller cookies.
- Cool slightly on baking sheets before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely.

You MUST try these! They are yummy.

Enjoy! :)

Love from Houston,

L and J

CrockPot Soups - it's that time of year again

So, I have a thing for soups. Maybe it's because Houston had such a stiflingly hot summer - now all signs of fall are welcome as we ease in to cooler weather (sort of - we keep flip flopping).

These are two CrockPot soups I have made recently. Since I am working so much closer to home now, I can go home during lunch and turn the CrockPot on - it's very handy! Just come home and eat, basically. CrockPot meals are also nice since I am getting off later now - less dinner prep to do when I get home.

This first recipe was a BIG HIT with my family (Mom, Memaw and Aunt Mary) when they visited a few weeks ago. I thought it was really cool that the soup was based on a boxed rice mix - the seasoning from the Rice-A-Roni seasoned the chicken and broth, too - very cool! See below recipe for my thoughts and plans for next time...

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Sorry, I didn't think to take a picture until I was putting up the leftovers... There's a better picture on the original blog - see the link below!

CrockPot Creamy Chicken and Wild Rice Soup

Recipe from Chef Mommy Blog!

Ingredients:
4 cups chicken broth
2 cups water
2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
1 package of Rice-a-Roni long grain and wild rice
1/2 tsp salt (plus more to taste)
1/2 tsp pepper
3/4 cup all purpose flour
1/2 cup butter
2 cups half and half
1 cup grated carrots (I diced mine and used some baby carrots I had on hand)
1 cup diced celery (we didn't have any celery, so I left this out)

Directions:
Combine broth, water, carrots, celery, chicken and rice (along with seasoning packet) in a large slow cooker. Cook on low for 6-8 hours or on high for 4 hours. Take out chicken and shred with two forks and then add back into slow cooker. In a small bowl combine salt, pepper, and flour. In medium saucepan over medium heat, melt butter. Stir in flour mixture by tablespoon to form a roux. Whisk in cream, a little at a time, until fully incorporated and smooth. Stir cream mixture into slow cooker and then let cook on low for 15 more minutes.

WARNING - Don't blindly dumb all the cream mixture into the crock pot at the end unless you want REALLY thick soup. Add it until it reaches the consistency you're looking for. I didn't use all of my cream mixture, and I still think I added too much.

IN REVIEW - Next time, for one, I think I will add onions to the soup (I love cooking with onions and always think they improve this sort of recipe). Also, I'll be more careful with the cream sauce. I also think that the soup would be good without the cream sauce (so just regular chicken and rice). My mom was going to try it this way (she's not into creamy soups).

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Chicken Enchilada Soup was a favorite of mine at the Chi Omega house, and ever since graduating, I've been searching for a recipe as good as theirs, and this one comes close! It seems a little thinner than theirs, but it was sooo good and heated up nicely.

Chicken Enchilada Soup

From Real Mom Kitchen!

1 15-ounce can black beans, rinsed and drained (I opted for pinto instead)
1 14.5-ounce can diced tomatoes
1 10-ounce package frozen whole kernel corn
1/2 cup chopped onion
1/2 cup chopped yellow, green, or red bell pepper
1 10-ounce can enchilada sauce (I used medium, per Lan's request)
1 10.75-ounce can condensed cream of chicken soup
1 1/2 cups milk
1 cup shredded Pepper jack cheese (4 ounces)
2 chicken breasts

In a 3 1/2 to 5 quart slow cooker, combine drained beans, tomatoes, corn, onion, and bell pepper. Place 2 chicken breasts on top of mixture. In a large bowl, whisk together enchilada sauce and soup. Gradually whisk in milk until smooth. Pour sauce mixture over ingredients in cooker.Cover; cook on low heat for 6 to 8 hours or on high for 3 to 4 hours. Remove chicken and cut or shred into bite sized pieces. Add chicken back into soup. Top with pepper jack cheese (I did this after plating) and serve. Can also be topped with avocado, sour cream, or crushed tortilla chips.

Note: if the soup is too thick for you, just add a little more milk after it’s all cooked.

IN REVIEW - This makes A LOT (see below). We could probably eat on it 3 times (with me taking leftovers to work the next day each time). It's hard to cut down, since it calls for whole cans of things, but I made a whole recipe of it and froze the leftovers. We are having it again this week, so I'll see how well it held up in the freezer! It was SO GOOD. Definitely my favorite over the creamy chicken and rice. We had cheese enchiladas with it, which was nice too.

See, it makes a lot! This was after we'd both eaten.

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I hope you have time to make these recipes, because they are great! PS - both of these recipes are from Pinterest. If you aren't on Pinterest yet, stop what you are doing and go join immediately. It changed my life. (Well, that may be a bit of an exaggeration, but it is a wealth of good ideas, and I LOVE it and I have a feeling you will too - trust me.)

More Holloway fun to come soon - weekend recap and Canton finds.

Love from Houston,

L and J

House Tour Continues - Kitchen and Breakfast Area

You've been asking for them, and here they are! More house pics for your enjoyment :)

The kitchen is basically my favorite room in the house. I LOVE everything in it, especially our granite. It's so pretty :) I may have said this in previous posts, but I was nervous when we made our selections (chose colors, finishes, flooring, etc.) that something would look off in the house or not match exactly, but we were very happy with the way everything turned out, especially in the kitchen!

General shot of the kitchen - as you can see, it's a very open area.

It looks out into the breakfast room, with the living room after that.

Our pantry - the door to the right goes into the formal living room. To the left is the entryway to the front door. On the wall to the left of the pantry is the sampler Erica Cain made us as a wedding gift - and the clock on top was from Laura Ficken (we get lots of compliments on these :) ).

Fridge and canisters. We have really enjoyed having the ice/water in the door!

Range/stove and microwave. I'm really glad that my stand mixer fits on the counter - it's easier to get to when I need it!

Sink/dishwasher.

Close up of our sinks.

Our island - I love it!

Our drawers go out really far! I think this is cool, but it is probably standard in every house build nowadays, haha...

On to the Breakfast Room... We have a little bar in between, complete with comfy stools!

Breakfast table (if you ever came to Stonhenge to visit me and Sarah, you might remember this!)

Our buffet, where we showcase our MSU pottery. Fun fact - my square bowl has a typo on it ("Bawgs" instead of "Dawgs"). I have had it for a couple of years, and never noticed until one of my friends here pointed it out! Oh well.

The Breakfast Room looks into the Living Room.

That's all for now!

Up next for us... anniversary weekend trip (yes, our anniversary was in July, but we were about to buy the house then, so we decided to postpone the trip until October!) - we are staying downtown, going to a Brazilian Steakhouse, and going to see the King Tut exhibit (nerdy fun)!

Love from Houston!

L and J